Editing Geats (section)

== Modern legacy ==
Today, the merger of the two nations is complete, as there is no longer any tangible identification in Götaland with a Geatish identity, apart from the common tendency of residents of the [[provinces of Sweden|provinces]] of Västergötland and [[Östergötland]] to refer to themselves as ''västgötar'' (West Geats) and ''östgötar'' (East Geats), similarly to how residents of other provinces refer to themselves. The dialects spoken in those provinces and some surrounding areas are also collectively called [[götamål]]. Although the city ''Göteborg'' ([[Gothenburg]]) has formerly been considered to have been named after the river [[Göta älv]], it may instead have been named after the Geats ('fortress of the Geats') when it was founded in 1621.<ref name="wahlberg">{{Cite book|last=Wahlberg|first=Mats|year=2003|title=Svenskt ortnamndslexikon|publisher=Språk och folkminnesinstitutet |pages=103}}</ref>

Until 1973 the official title of the [[Monarchy of Sweden|Swedish king]] was "King of Sweden" (earlier: of the Swedes), the Geats/Goths and the [[Wends]] (with the formula ''Sveriges, Götes och Vendes konung'', in Latin ''N.N. Dei Gratia, Suecorum, Gothorum et Vandalorum Rex''). The title "King of the Wends" was copied from the Danish title, while the Danish kings called themselves "Kings of the Gotlanders" (which, like "Geats", was translated into "Goths" in Latin). "Wends" is a term normally used to describe the Slavic peoples who inhabited large areas of modern east Germany and Pomerania. See further in the Wikipedia articles [[King of the Goths]] and [[King of the Wends]].

The titles, however, changed in 1973 when the new king [[Carl XVI Gustaf]] decided that his royal title should simply be "King of Sweden". The disappearance of the old title was his decision alone.